Economics Unit Vocabulary

These are words related to economics and from the articles by Bullik, Ariely, and Lowenstein.

STUDY

PLAY

analyze

= to examine or think about something carefully, in order to understand it. Ex. The marketing people need to ______________ the information from the surveys.

goods

= things that are made in order to be sold. When students buy books, the books are the ________________.

services

= a particular type of help or work that is provided by a business to customers. Ex. Things like classes, car repairs, and haircuts are examples of ___________________________.

distribution

= when goods are supplied to shops and companies for them to sell. The wholesaler and bookstore are part of the ___________________.

production

= the process of making or growing things to be sold. The author and publisher are part of the ________________ of the book

consumers

= people who buy or use a product. Ex. When students buy the books, the students are the ____________________.

consumption

= the amount that people use or buy. Ex. The government is trying to _____________ fuel consumption.

rational

=thoughts or decisions based on reasons rather than emotions. Ex. Traditional economics assumes that people make _____________ decisions.

irrational

= not based on clear thought or reason. Ex. Their decision was _____________.

predictably

= when you know what will happen or what they will do. Ex. The title of Ariely's book is "_____________ Irrational."

surplus

= an amount of something that is more than what is needed or used. Ex. There was a ____________ of books, so the bookstore sent some back to the company.

demand

= the need or desire that people have for particular goods and services. Ex. If many students want a book, it is in ________________.

scarcity

= a situation in which there is not enough of something. Ex. If there are more students than there are textbooks, the _________________ could increase the price

profit

= money that you gain by selling things or doing business, after your costs have been paid. Ex. It cost $5 to make the item, and they sold it for $12 so they made a $7 _____________.

maximize

= make as big as possible. Ex. Most companies try to _____________ profits.

minimize

= make as small as possible. Ex. Companies usually try to _____________ costs.

reduce

= make smaller. Ex. Sometimes if you ____________ the price of an item, you can sell more.

relativity

= The idea that people make decision about value by comparing different options. Ex. Ariely showed the idea of _____________ with the ad from "The Economist" that used different options for subscriptions.

marketing

=the activity of deciding how to advertise a product, what price to charge for it etc. Ex. Apple spends a lot of money on _____________.

reasonable

= fair, not to high or low. Ex. The price seemed _____________.

manipulate

= to make someone think and behave exactly as you want them to, by skilfully deceiving or influencing them. Ex. The companies try to _____________ people into spending more money.

estimate

= to try to judge the value, size, speed, cost etc of something, without calculating it exactly. Ex. We need to _____________ the value of the things in your house.

subscription

= an amount of money you pay, usually once a year, to receive copies of a newspaper or magazine. Ex. He has a _____________ to the New York Times.

fundamental

= relating to the most basic and important parts of something. Ex. Advertising is a _____________ part of most businesses.

revenue

= money that a business or organization receives over a period of time, especially from selling goods or services. Ex. They want to find a good way to boost _____________.

decoy

= someone or something that is used to trick someone into going somewhere or doing something, so that you can catch them. Ex. They put in a _____________ to trick the customers into spending more.

worth

= how much a person is willing to pay for something Ex. This car is _____________ $10,000.

expense

=money you spend while doing or making something. Ex. Travel is an _____________ we need to consider when we make our business plan.

investor

= someone who gives money to a company, business, or bank in order to make money. Ex. Warren Buffet is an _____________, who has made billions of dollars.

scandal

= an event in which someone, especially someone important, behaves in a bad way that shocks people. Ex. There was a huge _____________ on Wall Street a few years ago.

distort

= to change the appearance, sound, or shape of something so that it is strange or unclear. Ex. Gifts from companies _____________ decisions by doctors

pharmaceutical

= relating to the production of drugs and medicines. Ex. He works for a ______________ company.

complement

= to make a good combination with someone or something else. Ex. Lowenstein argues that behavioral economics should not replace traditional economics but rather should ______________ it.

incentive

= something that encourages a person to work harder or do some activity. Ex. The manager offered ______________ to get the salespeople to sell more cars.